I Like My Chances
by clairemaclennan
Summary: Cormac McLaggen - certified train wreck and airhead - must fight for his life alongside Lisa Turpin in the 62nd annual Hunger Games


His name is called, every head in the square turns to see the reaction of the blonde boy who actually had the potential to bring honour to their district, his friends- at least they would call themselves his friends now - gaped and stared, each pair of eyes wide in some blend of horror and awe. Would District 5 have a chance this year with their new tribute? Or would he remain the stubborn individual he was and fight the peace keepers, earning him one fine bullet wound to the head?

Cormac McLaggen remained perfectly still, even as the announcer motioned him up to the stage for the third time. His senses seemed to have simply given up on him. All he could hear was a dull silence ringing in his ears; all he could see was the pale grey of the sky that loomed heavily over the residents of the district. Large screens had been fitted around the square for the Reaping event that day. There were four in total, each progressively larger than the last, and each showing an image of Cormac's stunned expression four times larger than the boy himself. "I- I don't..." The stunned young man stammered under his breath, shaking his head slightly in disbelief.

'Perfect day for a Reaping', Cormac had joked earlier with his father. This would have been his last year in the pool, the last time he needed to fear the calling to his death. Cormac would be old enough to skip the Games in a little over two weeks, yet now there was a possibility he wouldn't even make that milestone. Suddenly, he was shaken from his He felt two strong hands on him, each uncomfortably grabbing a shoulder, keeping Cormac from holding back the event by shoving him forward onto the stage. Not being from a particularly wealthy family, the boy was dressed in all that could be afforded for such an event. A pair of dust-covered, brown trousers covered his trembling legs, a tight fitting white shirt that was by far too small for him was stretched across his strong chest, threatening to split and spill out his muscles at any moment.

"And so we have Lisa Turpin and Cormac McLaggen as District 5's tributes for this year's Hunger Games!" The announcer's voice boomed through the square, his microphone screeching with feedback that was eventually fixed by one of the Capitol's most useless sound men. Cormac didn't listen to another word that was said. All he could bring himself to focus on was keeping his jaw set firmly as he stared emotionlessly into the sea of familiar faces. Students at the local school in the district knew what Cormac McLaggen was capable of. They knew that the only reason he wasn't a part of any athletics team was that he was too busy being caught up in ridiculous tests of nerve and bravery that more often than not saw him spending the week being tended to by nurses and healers in the area to attend the try outs. They knew he was more focussed on forcing himself onto half the cheerleading team to even care about sports. What was the point in life if you couldn't have a little fun with a girl every time you snapped your fingers?

Lisa Turpin was another story entirely. Lisa was the type of girl that would not stand even the slightest chance of registering on Cormac's radar. She was the complete opposite of everything he was. While Cormac was tall, muscular and intimidating, Lisa was tiny, skinny as a rake and cute as a button. His brawn might help him take down a few opponents in the games to come, but there was no way his intelligence would ever save him. All of Lisa's power was literally rested on her shoulders. Her mind was by far her most potentially harmful weapon, a tool that had been twisting people around her little finger since she had learned how to speak. However, the power of speech had clearly left her now. She stood on Cormac's left, a good foot below the towering blonde, fear causing tremors to shake through each inch of her skin as she looked out at the faces of everybody that had ever known and loved her. The poor girl couldn't bring herself to put up a wall. Lisa wore her terror like a target on her chest.

Glancing quickly over at his fellow tribute and now enemy, Cormac could almost feel his heart shatter inside his chest as the realisation of what his name being drawn truly meant. He might have to murder this innocent girl beside him. How could he ever bring himself to take the life of any human, especially one as delicate and innocent as her? Though he had never so much as looked at this china doll of a girl that barely held herself on her feet beside him, Cormac reached over and took her small hand in his. He could feel her eyes shoot in his direction; most likely full of deep confusion or hatred, but Cormac didn't dare to take his gaze off the spot deep in the crowd that was keeping him from breaking down in tears in front of Panem in its entirety. Once her confusion had passed, Cormac breathed a silent sigh of relief that she squeezed his hand in return, grateful that he hadn't yet made an enemy of a potential ally.

****end of chapter one****

So this is something I wrote when I was bored one day. It's my first upload here so I have no idea if you're gonna like it or not, but reviews would be cool. Cormac and Lisa are kind of my favourites. Basically, I picture her as Lucy Hale, so after seeeing Freddie Stroma and Lucy Hale in the latest Cinderella Story movie I've been fangirling over Cormac/Lisa


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